All the maps agree...

September 22, 2003

National Birds of Prey Centre

I visited the UK's National Birds of Prey Centre last weekend: a tremendous day out, especially in the Indian summer we seem to be enjoying at the moment. Until recently it looked as though the centre was going to close in the next few weeks, but now a potential buyer has come forward. The director, Jemima Parry-Jones, is still leaving, however, which is a shame as she is a great presenter and full of infectious enthusiasm -- so visit this year if you get the chance.

"If you are keen on taking photos," says the Web site, "you could not come to a better place. The trained birds are out on the lawn in good weather and are within feet of the paths, with no wire. The daily demonstrations give ample opportunity for both static photographs and if you are really good - photos of the birds in flight."

Unfortunately, I'm not "really good," but I did manage oneortwoshots where I got more of the bird in shot than out of it... And on the rare occasions when they stood still, I even managed to get someofthem in focus...